Pramila Jayapal
Representative for Washington · Democratic · United States
“Only 2 in 10 Americans trust the government to do what is right for them, and they are constantly seeing their elected officials selling them out to the highest bidder. They see the people elected to represent them instead making decisions to increase their own personal wealth and pad their profits.”
“Mr. Speaker, let me be clear about what my colleagues are trying to do in their bill that they are advancing. They are trying to advance a fake stock trading ban. I want to be very clear: Their bill does not block insider trading, no matter what it is called.”
“It allows Members to continue selling stocks that they know will decrease in value based on insider information they got while in Congress. Their bill would do nothing to stop Congressman Rob Bresnahan, who just last year dumped $130,000 worth of stock in four Medicaid providers before he voted to slash Medicaid for constituents and peopl…”
“It tries to make you forget that there is a real solution that I helped co-lead called the Restore Trust in Government Act, which actually does ban stock trading. It does ban insider trading. It does root out corruption in government.”
“Mr. Speaker, the Republican majority leader said: You can be what you want in America. That is what he said, but you can't be what you want in Republicans' America.”
“Mr. Speaker, I rise in opposition to H.R. 1526, a bill that would prohibit district courts from issuing nationwide injunctions. My colleagues on the other side of the aisle want you to believe that somehow these nationwide injunctions being issued by courts across the country against Donald Trump's illegal and unconstitutional actions are…”
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“It tries to make you forget that there is a real solution that I helped co-lead called the Restore Trust in Government Act, which actually does ban stock trading. It does ban insider trading. It does root out corruption in government. It does prohibit Presidents, Vice Presidents, Members of Congress, and their dependent children, spouses, and trustees from owning and trading individual stocks. If this Republican majority were to bring that bill to the floor, if we were allowed to force a vote on these bills, they would actually pass, and Republicans would have to admit that their bill does nothing. The SPEAKER pro tempore. Members are reminded to refrain from engaging in personalities toward the President.”
“Only 2 in 10 Americans trust the government to do what is right for them, and they are constantly seeing their elected officials selling them out to the highest bidder. They see the people elected to represent them instead making decisions to increase their own personal wealth and pad their profits. Who is to blame for thinking that there is no trust in Congress, in the government, when there is a President who is openly profiting from the American people? He generated at least $2.2 billion in income in his first full year in office. Now, he is selling Wall Street firms early access to Truth Social posts, where he brings out information that is ``market movers.'' This is literally the highway to making profit. The Republican proposal is nothing but a sham to score cheap political points before they go home to their constituents.”
“It allows Members to continue selling stocks that they know will decrease in value based on insider information they got while in Congress. Their bill would do nothing to stop Congressman Rob Bresnahan, who just last year dumped $130,000 worth of stock in four Medicaid providers before he voted to slash Medicaid for constituents and people across the country. It would do nothing to stop Congresswoman Lisa McClain, whose husband bought at least $100,000 worth of stock in Elon Musk's AI company shortly before its model was adopted by the Defense Department. A Common Cause report published at the end of 2025 said that Members of Congress made 13,324 trades, totaling a whopping $635 million in 2025. This is absurd. No wonder we are governing in a moment when public trust is at historical lows.”
“Mr. Speaker, let me be clear about what my colleagues are trying to do in their bill that they are advancing. They are trying to advance a fake stock trading ban. I want to be very clear: Their bill does not block insider trading, no matter what it is called. It does not ban stock trading, which is the number one issue for over 80 percent of Americans who want Members of Congress to stop padding their own pockets instead of addressing their constituents' interests, things like ending the illegal war in Iran, bringing down gas prices, bringing down grocery prices, and investing in housing. None of that is going to be protected. Their bill allows Members to still purchase private stocks, keep public stocks that they already own, and act on legislative matters that directly increase the value of their stocks.”
“That is nursing homes taken away for five out of eight seniors, and that is healthcare taken away for 38 million kids. Vote ``no'' on this disastrous Republican resolution.”
“Mr. Speaker, the Republican majority leader said: You can be what you want in America. That is what he said, but you can't be what you want in Republicans' America. Factually, the top 1 percent of billionaires and millionaires in America are worth more than 291 million Americans, 90 percent of the country, because we are rigging the economy against them. That is what Republicans are doing. There are 801 U.S. billionaires who have $6 trillion of wealth, and Republicans now want to give a $4.5 trillion tax cut to the wealthiest billionaires. That is what Donald Trump said: ``You're rich as hell.'' ``We're going to give you tax cuts.'' This is on the backs of working Americans because voting ``yes'' for this resolution is voting for a minimum of $880 billion in cuts to Medicaid. That is healthcare taken away from 72 million Americans.”
“These are the hallmarks of an authoritarian who wants to hold all power, and the courts are doing what they are supposed to do and issuing nationwide injunctions against this kind of abuse of power. Somehow, my colleagues never complained about nationwide injunctions when dozens were issued against former Presidents Obama and Biden, but now that it is against Donald Trump, they want to rig the rules to give the President free rein to do whatever he wants, regardless of whether it is illegal or unconstitutional. Well, get this: We do not have kings in America. Vote ``no'' on this bill. The SPEAKER pro tempore. Members are reminded to refrain from engaging in personalities toward the President.”
“In a lawsuit brought in my home State of Washington, a Reagan-appointed Federal judge--not a Democratic-appointed Federal judge, a Reagan- appointed Federal judge--ruled that the order was blatantly unconstitutional because the 14th Amendment plainly states that all persons born in the United States are U.S. citizens. What is next, stripping citizenship from U.S. citizens? That is in the Trump extremist playbook, as well. So is apparently kidnapping and disappearing people, including those with legal status, without any due process, as well as getting rid of entire departments established by Congress and suppressing freedom of speech and dissent.”
“Mr. Speaker, I rise in opposition to H.R. 1526, a bill that would prohibit district courts from issuing nationwide injunctions. My colleagues on the other side of the aisle want you to believe that somehow these nationwide injunctions being issued by courts across the country against Donald Trump's illegal and unconstitutional actions are unfair. Well, here is the message. If you don't like the injunctions, don't do illegal, unconstitutional stuff. That is simple. Nationwide injunctions play an essential role in protecting our democracy and holding the political branches accountable. Without them, thousands or millions of people could be harmed by these illegal or unconstitutional government policies. Just look at Donald Trump's attempt to end birthright citizenship.”